Does fair play fare well on the field?

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At a time when the recent whitewash of Indian cricket team in England is still being discussed with much angst, an award to the Indian skipper for his sporting gesture by the ICC surely calls for a debate, at least among the cricket crazy fans.
M.S. Dhoni has won the ICC Spirit of Cricket Award for his gesture of calling back Ian Bell after the England batsman was runout under controversial circumstances during the Trent Bridge Test. According to ICC Chief Executive Haroon Lorgat, Dhoni and his team showed great maturity by withdrawing the appeal.
But in the present result-oriented times, is the spirit of sportsmanship and fair play still laudable? Not really. Many cricket fans don’t think that after losing all the matches, this award makes a difference. Says a college student and cricket enthusiast Aquib Mohammad, “They haven’t won a single match. They can’t become heroes by doing things that are morally correct. They should have shown results too.”
IT professional Satyajeet Rastogi says that he doesn’t care if Dhoni has been honoured. “After shameful defeats, this award doesn’t really make a difference. As a cricketer and captain, he should have shown his talent in the game on field. The worst part is that the team didn’t even compete with the opposition. They surrendered meekly. That is not sportsmanship,” he says.
However, the sports fraternity thinks differently. Polo player Adhiraj Singh believes Dhoni did the most apt thing as a sportsperson. “You can’t win by cheating on others’ mistake. As a sportsman, one should always play fair and square. You have to win with your prowess and not by despicable tricks. He deserves the award,” he says.
Some feel that by going ahead and withdrawing the appeal, Dhoni has set an example of fair play for many young sportsmen. “It’s not always about winning. These kind of gestures come rarely. Even the most experienced are not capable of doing something like Dhoni has done and we should appreciate and laud his move. I’m sure many young players would idolise him,” says football player Gouramangi Singh and also lauds a similar move by South African Jaques Kallis during the World Cup earlier this year.
And not all the cricket fans are disapproving. Some applaud the honour given to Dhoni. Management professional and a cricket fan Kunal Ganguly says losing in the recent series and being honoured with this award are two completely different things. “The Indian team fared poorly in the series because of many shortcomings in the entire team. Dhoni solely can’t be held responsible. But his mentioned gesture is something to feel proud of as an Indian. It also speaks a lot about him being great as a person. We can’t think of many examples like this. He showed that we don’t take advantage of the situation rather believe in playing well,” says Kunal.